Letters to the Editor

Ray Rannfeldt

August 13, 2017

A few years ago our city used the Institute of Public Affairs from the University of Iowa to help chart the city's direction for the future. The city council was very much a part of this process. The consultant's recommendations reviewed what accomplishment the city had made and then focused on how to grow our city and best use our city's limited financial resources. If discussed at all, the daycare was considered a business, just like all other businesses in town, that must support themselves and any expansion they might desire. Could our city provide funding to Pioneer or LSB or any of the doctors offices if they stood before the council and said they wanted to expand and needed money to do so? How about the nonprofit churches? You know the answer. We expect businesses, even nonprofits, to pay their own way and the daycare expansion needs to do the same. After all, they don't pay taxes and thus already get money indirectly from the city. Additionally, the city donated $300,00.00 when the daycare was started. After all is said and done with the daycare's expansion request, the city will have donated nearly 1/3 of the money required for the daycare's existence and it is not even a city obligation such as our EMS, parks, streets, Memorial Building, etc. Is that reasonable in any way? Ask your council members to reconsider their vote to fund the daycare expansion. The daycare will continue in its key role in our city but needs to do so without the city's support for the expansion - even if it has to pay its own way.